Keep updated on all that is happening around Thiessen Farms!

CSA 2018 – week 18 – the final week!

Overall it has been a good & successful season and we are satisfied. The feedback from our CSA members would indicate that most are satisfied as well. Certainly we appreciate the comments we get each week about our produce.

Not having to pick & prep the produce twice a week for pick-up eases our workload considerably.

However our farmers’ markets continue – Georgetown until 13 October and North York until the end of October. And so we continue to seed & plant. Things are growing well.

Crops we transplanted this past week & today …

Vegetables we are harvesting now …

It’s quite unusual to have the tomato plants still so lush & green at this time of year. While there are lots of fruit, the quality has diminished – lots of cracking & splitting, softness … and we will stop picking soon.

What’s in the last box?

sweet peppers, beans, squash.

We were hoping the Chinese cabbage would be ready in time. It just made it! Though still quite small & not filled out totally, it is part of the box this week. It was part of the CSA share back in week 6 too. Then the next plantings didn’t survive the drought. But now we have it again. Chinese cabbage is so tender & mild – eat it fresh in a salad instead of lettuce. Use the large leaves as wraps, make it into coleslaw or even cook it (stir-fry, saute …) While the outer leaves are a lovely green colour, the inside is creamy white and delicious!

Swiss chard or kale – choose one or the other. Both can be enjoyed raw or cooked. I have included a simple chard recipe below.

Kohlrabi always makes a great snack. Just peel and eat! Of course you can turn it into a slaw or saute it or cook & mash it or spiralize it & turn the kohlrabi into noodles. Certainly it’s a versatile vegetable!

Many of our CSA members want lettuce every week. This year we managed to include lettuce 13 times out of 18 weeks. Enjoy your last bag of lettuce mix. Add some arugula to your salad to spice it up. There is also garlic and sweet peppers.

This week we move into our last planting of beans – how’s that for good timing?! Beans are another popular crop & we included them 8 times this season.

We continue to work away at our winter squash harvest. It’s a lot of heavy lifting – there’s a big crop. Choose several squash this week. Stored properly (room temperature & dry) they will last for weeks and even months.

Easy Swiss Chard Recipe

(from https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/swiss_chard/#recipe)

Prep time:5 minutes

Cook time:15 minutes

Yield:Serves 2-4

INGREDIENTS

1 large bunch of fresh Swiss chard

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, sliced

Pinch of dried crushed red pepper

1/4 teaspoon of whole coriander seeds (The coriander seeds are optional – but coriander is wonderful with chard!)

METHOD

1 Prep the chard stalks and leaves: Rinse out the Swiss chard leaves thoroughly. Either tear or cut away the thick stalks from the leaves. Cut the stalk pieces into 1-inch or smaller pieces. Chop the leaves into narrow strips. Keep the stalks and leaves separate.

2 Sauté garlic and crushed red pepper flakes: Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan on medium high heat. Add garlic slices, crushed red pepper, and coriander seeds (if using), and cook for about 30 seconds, or until the garlic is fragrant.

4 Add the chopped leaves: Add the chopped chard leaves, toss with the oil and garlic in the pan. Cover and cook for 3 to 4 more minutes. Turn the leaves and the stalks over in the pan.

If the chard still needs a bit more cooking (remove a piece and taste it), cover and cook a few more minutes.

Serve immediately.

____________________________________________________________

Thank you to everyone for a great season! CSA is a great fit for our small, family farm – we not only have the security of knowing that our produce is sold before the season begins, but we also get to meet & know the people who are eating what we grow. Thank you to all our members for being a part of our CSA! Hope to see you in 2019.

Sage has also made some new friends & will miss greeting them each week!